Wasteland
by Sagakure
Summary: AU. The world was ravaged by the war between Hunters and Vampires. Made bitter by years of fighting and bloodshed, the silver-haired commander of the Hunter forces now finds a familiar face from the past in a most unexpected situation. Yaoi, ZxK, lemon.
1. Chapter 1

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Title: Wasteland**_

_**Characters/Pairing:**__ Zero x Kaname, with mentions of Yuuki._

_**Summary: **__AU. The world was ravaged by the bloody war between Hunters and Vampires... Made bitter by years of fighting and bloodshed, the silver-haired commander of the Hunter forces finds a familiar face from the past in a most unexpected situation. Yaoi, ZxK._

_**Disclaimer:**__ I don't own Vampire Knight, this is a fanfic written for fun and for love of the series. I'm not making any money with it.  
__**Warnings:**__ ANGST like whoa. Also character deaths, but it's just mentioned.  
Spoilers for recent chapters of the manga, particularly 35._

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"The king of the vampires himself, huh?"

"Yes, Lord Kiryuu! He was wounded in the battle and we captured him as our armies were combing through the last remains of the survivors in the castle. We brought him here and, well… we brought a lot of them here, and the rest of the men are already taking dibs and putting the beasts to a better use, if you see what I mean."

The last part was said in an emphatic tone, and the lecherous look on the soldier's face was quite obvious, there was no mistaking what he meant. "Oh, but don't worry, my lord! We saved the king for you. It's only fair, I reckon."

Zero wavered for a second. He'd been putting on a mask of vague disinterest until then, but for a split second, curiosity made him feel almost tempted to see their king. The foolish urge was quickly suppressed, a wave of anger washing through his body along with a bitterness that he'd grown used to over the years the war had lasted.

"So, what does he looks like? I bet it's another of those insupportable purebloods full of themselves."

"Aren't they all, my lord?" The soldier snickered as if sharing a good joke at the expense of the defeated side of the war, but the laughter kind of died in his throat when he saw that Kiryuu wasn't laughing at all.

The vampire kingdom was crushed, and the hunters had just triumphed in _the_ decisive battle, the one the vampire world wouldn't get back up from.

But Zero didn't even smile back, and the soldier's face fell, worried he might have said the wrong thing. There was never how to tell what was going through the mind of their leader. He was the last survivor of the Kiryuu clan, and he had disappeared into the land over the sea for a great many years, some said because his heart broke when the woman he loved died. Other tales said that it was a man that he loved and who died, but few paid heed to such foolish tales, and only naïve maidens actually believed them.

But at long last, the silver haired knight had returned, to lead the hunter armies against the vampires, crushing them in one spectacular victory after another, until the very top of the food chain was brought down to their knees, heavy chains now bound around the wrists and ankles of the beings who once walked the Earth preying freely on mankind.

The hunter armies whispered all sorts of tales about their silver haired leader, and how he was a vampire himself, but not by birth or choice. A pureblood had killed his family, and Kiryuu hated vampires above all else. The hunters had strongly hesitated at first, but they'd been losing for so long, and now that they had him, they kept racking victory after victory. Quickly, the fact that Zero was a vampire was put aside and readily forgotten at the face of the fact that he was a genius strategist and an amazing warrior.

Now, after the recent victories in which they'd crushed the very last of the royal armies, the hunters very much adored their champion and would trust him with their very lives regardless of what he may be himself.

The soldier was fidgeting by now, Zero having been apparently deep in thought for a few moments, as if he'd forgotten that the young man was still in the command tent.

"My lord Kiryuu? Would you want us to bring you their king?"

"Hmm? No!!"

Less briskly, he added "…No, don't bother. I have no interest in the filthy bloodsuckers, beyond killing them. Give him to the troops instead, let him taste the hatred of the hunters. I'm sure they're dying to put their hands on him."

The soldier looked like he couldn't believe what he'd just heard. He practically beamed in lustful delight, before thanking his lord profusely and rushing out to give the others the good news. _A king!! _

Zero scowled slightly. He'd always been against the rapes that followed a victory, but there wasn't really a way to stop them, and with an army so hell bent on inflicting as much pain as they could on the hated race they'd just defeated, it was a wasted effort to try and stop each of them, so he just let them be.

_Ah, Yuuki, how the world has changed since you left it. If you could see me now, would you even recognize me?_

He eyed distractedly his reflection on the small square mirror hanging from a wall of his tent, there not out of vanity but just so that he could shave in the mornings.  
Some of his officers decorated their tents with great pompousness, with fancy ornaments, silk and the fur of wild animals making comfortable and luxurious even a basic chair, but Zero had no interest for such things. His tent was simple and functional to a minimalist level. Bare as the wasteland his heart was now, perhaps.

He was some years older, had gained some scars, grown some dark circles under his eyes, lost some of the lanky innocence of his teenage years, but more importantly, he gained a gravity in his gaze that could pierce through the heart of lesser men in a split second. His soldiers worshipped him, but they also very much dreaded him and his cold, unflinching gaze.

_If you had stayed by my side… If you two hadn't been so foolish. Would you still be alive, Yuuki? If you had come with me, rather than staying to face Rido with Kaname? Would you two still be alive?_

He had refused to fight what he deemed to be a pureblood's war, back then. He'd asked her to come with him, despite her race. For them to run away across the ocean, where they may find a moment of respite before the winds of war caught up with them.

But she was decided to get her revenge, and deceived herself in her belief of being able to face Rido and win.

If Kaname had _actually_ been there, things might have been different, but the council was also attacking them, and he wasn't with her when Yuuki took upon herself to go after Rido all alone. So perhaps, it was indeed Kaname's fault.  
But hadn't he told Zero that he couldn't do anything against Rido anyway? The older pureblood had held a curse that chained Kaname's very will.

And yet, when Rido tore through the school and devoured Yuuki, Zero still blamed Kaname. How could he not, heartbroken as he was?

Kaname and him had been lovers, at once point, among the many unexplainable things that Zero wanted to forget in his past. But the bitterness of the loss tore them apart. They had been united in their love for Yuuki, and that same love for her destroyed them when they lost her.

Zero left then, and disappeared for many years. Only the plight of his own people, the race he considered his own even now that he was physically one of the enemy, managed to bring him back from his self appointed exile.

So much had changed in the world. But the vampire hegemony was no more. A new, young monarchy had emerged from the ashes of the fratricide wars with the council, but it was not long before the hunters struck it down.

Even then, the still frail and young new government of the vampires managed to lead an impressive war until now, hiding completely its leaders so that they would remain safe until the very last moment. No hunter had even seen the face of the young monarch of the vampire race, they only knew that he had taken over the throne after the Kurans fell during the last battle with the council.

Unbalanced or not, the vampire race was strong and deadly. Without Zero's providential return, the hunters would most likely have lost the war. They knew it well. There wasn't a single one of them who didn't acknowledge that they owed their victory to their leader.

But it was indeed _their_ victory, at Zero's eyes, not his own, even if he had led them to win. There was nothing in it for him, at least not in his eyes. The men outside were probably already imagining that he would be their king now that the war would soon be over.  
Maybe he would accept it, if they needed him to play yet another role. But there was no ambition in the lifeless eyes that stared back at Zero's tired face from the mirror.

No, his will to live had died long ago, on the dusty ground of the ruined academy, along with a young woman drawing her last breath in a puddle of her own blood, long brown hair splayed around her broken form as she fell.

After that, Zero was in a rage worse than anything he'd ever felt before, worse even than his fall when he was turned. And unable to bear the idea of going on any longer with the vampires, he had left, leaving Kaname to fend for himself against his uncle.

The hunter told himself the pureblood only had what he deserved.

But in the cold winter nights when Zero lay alone in his bed thinking of the past that was and the future that never would be, that cold feeling tearing at his heart would start again and again, never failing to return when he felt weak.

'_You let him die…' the_ voice of his ruthless conscience would whisper into his ear in the dark.

'_You let her die, and then you let him die, for failing to protect her when he hoped you would. You let them both down, and now you are all alone. Forever and ever.'_

And that would inevitably be the moment around which he would throw off his blankets and rush outside to practice with whatever weapon he could find, to train as hard as he could and push his body until it was exhausted enough that his mind would relent for a second.

_Yes, he really was alone, wasn't he?_ Alone for the centuries ahead. Millennia perhaps. Who knew how long a beast like him might live, with all the pure vampire blood he'd ingested, with how much he'd changed. Alone with the guilt, perhaps for all of eternity.

In a way, maybe it was to atone that he forced himself to go on living in such suffering. If only he wasn't so terribly alone, maybe he wouldn't be so lost that the only path he could take was the one immediately ahead of him, regardless of how tragic it may be. But there was no one to stand by his side and help guide him back into more peaceful waters.

And yet, his choices were so paradoxical. War had made him brutal. Years ago, he couldn't have imagined himself ordering an enemy prisoner to be given to the troops for their amusement.

The prisoner came back to his mind. He hadn't even seen him, and it's not as if he really cared, but that foolish curiosity inevitably returned. _Yet another __**pureblood**__…_ He spat the word inside his mind as if it was a curse, more out of habit than out of rational thought. He amalgamated it all in his mind as if they were all one and same, hateful species that needed to be wiped out. _So that this circle of pain would never restart again._

And yet, he didn't even really hate Kaname anymore, did he? He wasn't sure of it himself.

His heart was like a desert after he left the academy. There was nothing but ashes and desolation in it, and he hesitated in ever reopening it to see if he still possessed anything akin to what one may call feelings. _Had he ever loved Kaname, even? _He'd long tried to delude himself, make himself believe that he had never felt anything but lust triggered by the pureblood playing with his mind. Renewed futile attempts to feel less bad. A failure after another, until his heart was bitter enough that he no longer knew what was real feeling and what was made up memories.  
He'd certainly loved Yuuki, maybe even after she returned to her original form and lost the humanity that he loved.

He'd desperately _needed_ to hate Kaname. Because even for one so hell bent on ending his own life as Zero had been at various moment of his life, it simply was not possible to live on with the agony of having failed to prevent the death of the most important person in your life. His very soul would have shattered into a million pieces.

So, unknowingly, Zero had forced Kaname to shoulder that pain, and blamed him, repeating it within himself like a mantra in his heart until he made himself believe it.

In truth, deep inside he still hated himself just as much. Even more, perhaps, due to having denied his love for the other pureblood and forced his guilt onto him as well. That was why he couldn't face the cruel voice of his conscience in those cold nights. That was why he would flee it on and on.

But on a primal, simple survival level, Zero knew that to remain sane, and to be able to go on – even if he wasn't sure where he was going, even if he wasn't sure if he would really succeed at atoning for anything by wiping out all the purebloods and their followers—he absolutely _needed_ to stay alive and functioning. And for that, he needed to believe in whatever excuses his mind had fabricated to justify his continued existence.

He sighed heavily, not too pleased by the direction this train of thought was taking. Wrapping himself in a thick wool coat, he strode out of his tent, intent on going for a walk around the encampment and then a final debriefing of his officers before supper was served by their field cooks.

The night was already falling –the final battle had happened by day -- as usual, as hunters specialized in surprise strikes and knew better than attacking vampires by night.

Fires were lit all over the encampment, laughter and merriment almost everywhere as the hunters celebrated their victory with much ale and boisterous joy.

The merriment was only on their side, naturally, and even with all the laughing and toasting the cries of the captives were easily discernible among the other noises of the camp. Some cried out for their lost ones, others visibly cried from a more immediate and directly physical pain.

The soldiers of the hunter army were collecting their spoils of war, and the vampires didn't have much left to offer other than their bodies.

Zero turned a deaf ear and walked away from the louder areas, resuming his walk.

Supper went uneventfully, and as fulfilling as ever, which meant not much at all, as Zero had long lost the interest for food and other such things. He habitually ate just the bare necessary to keep his lean body functioning like a well oiled machine. And even then, it was merely because he needed it to fight properly.

Either way, with the way his heart had been for the past several years, the food tasted like ashes in his mouth.

He ate alone as he always did, and then stepped out of his tent again, stretching a little, intending on having a last whiff of the fresh air before preparing for sleep.

The young soldier standing by the entry of his tent saluted from a polite distance with a stupid grin on his face.

Zero wasn't one for much talk normally, but the soldier looked so very much tempted to talk to him that he indulged.

"What's so funny?"

"I… I just wanted to thank you, my lord! I couldn't believe our luck, when they told us, you'd given us the enemy king."

"That… " Zero sneered, but it didn't dampen the spirits of the young soldier –they were all more or less used to their leader's less than charming moods.

The younger man was practically jittery, rambling on and on about how grateful they were to '_lord Kiryuu_'. It made Zero vaguely sick. These men had expected him to rape the prisoner, and were now thanking him profusely for having given him to them for the same purpose.

Much as he hated the purebloods, that little voice in the back of his conscience, that would remind him of how he left Kaname at Rido's mercy, would point out that what he was doing now wasn't better than what he did in the past.

Zero stiffened, angrily forcing himself out of the musings of his guilty mind.

About that time, he caught a chunk of what the soldier had been telling him.

"…and it's really amazing, I mean, we of course knew purebloods were practically the stuff of mythology, but even among them the Kurans are incredible, that beauty, and that body… Ohhh, that body!! I never before had imagined such a-"

It took Zero a moment to register the words before he interrupted the other suddenly.

"_WHAT_ did you say?!"

"M-my lord?"

"Their king. He's a Kuran?!"

"A… aren't they always, my lord?"

"I was under the impression the Kurans were extinct. That during their own civil war with their council, they had all perished."

"W-well, he could be lying, but he said his name was Kaname Kur-"

Zero broke out running in a mad dash and was gone before the young man could even finish his sentence.

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[tbc...]

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_Each time I think I have a good idea of what series I'll write next, my Muses go crazy and mess it all up with new plot ideas. XD;  
This was supposed to be a shortish one-shot... Well, not anymore. XD  
It became a two part fic, but the way the second chapter is going, it might end up being three chapters instead, since it's getting longer._

_Angsty like whoa too. D: Poor Zero & Kaname. Sorry for all the pain. XD;;_


	2. Chapter 2

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Wasteland – chapter 2**_

_**Warnings:**__ This chapter gets a bit more graphic injury-wise, and some might find it disturbing, but it's for the sake of the Hurt/Comfort… No H/C can have comfort without some hurt first, right? lol_

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Zero ran so fast he was practically a blur as he made his way to the large communal tent where he'd been told that his soldiers had taken the enemy king to.

It was a credit to his men that they recognized him as he passed them by, rather than panicking at seeing someone moving so fast and possibly thinking it was an enemy. But they were all used to their leader, and while it had originally disturbed them that he was a vampire, they owed him too many victories and worshipped him too much by now to even think of what he was, most of the time.  
Most of them just conveniently ignored the issue, openly loathing vampires but not considering their commander one of them. After all, he was just as open in his hatred for the enemy race, so they didn't have to worry about double loyalties or offending him.

And yet, loathing for the enemy or not, the hunter armies were also quick to admit that vampires were _very_ pleasing to the eye, and were not above putting those charms to a better use whenever they could put their hands on prisoners after the battle. It was as if all their rage and fear for the enemy race turned to a lustful desire to inflict pain and humiliation once the vampires became fettered prisoners at their mercy rather than dangerous predators. Payback for all those long years where the hunters had feared them and stood guard through long sleepless nights… they would give the bloodsuckers all that fear back tenfold.

Zero knew better than anyone his soldiers' tendencies, as he had been strongly against them and long tried to dissuade them from raping the prisoners as soon as a battle was over. But even the authority of the most worshipped commander could only go so far among soldiers drunk on victory and thirsty for revenge, and he knew well that the rapes would go on as soon as he had his back turned.  
Over the years, he'd grown more and more bitter, more and more harsh as the war and what felt like a void in his soul led him to stop caring so much, and to realize that if he couldn't stop them, he may as well be more permissive so that when he truly meant to order them off, they would actually obey rather than wait for him to look away as they might otherwise. A commander must know not to give orders that might push his men to disobey him.

But he'd seen the aftermaths of groups of soldiers teaming up on vampire prisoners, and he knew what a horrible sight it could be. More than a few times, he'd personally finished off what was left of the prisoner, with a merciful bullet to the head.

But not even the knowledge of what to expect and the horrible scenes he'd witnessed before could prepare him for the sight he had when he flipped open the flap of the tent and rushed in.

_Kaname…_

It wasn't so much the sight of a prisoner who'd visibly been tortured and passed around by a number of soldiers that was the most disturbing. It was the fact that it was… _him_.

Zero was unprepared for the wave of repressed feelings that tore through his chest as he laid eyes on that face he hadn't seen in years. If he hadn't been so hardened by the years of war and emptiness, he might have shed tears right on the spot.  
But perhaps it wasn't such a bad thing that he was now harder and more level-headed, as it also made him more decisive and quick to display the necessary authority.

Zero broke the group off instantly, barking orders and shoving aside the surprised –and semi-naked— soldiers crowding around Kaname. Most of them had visibly been waiting to take over while cheering on the ones currently having their turn with the king. One of the soldiers, a large burly fellow with a red beard, had been raping the pureblood, while another man had a painfully firm grip on the vampire's hair, holding his head at the right level while pumping himself with his other hand, visibly intent on climaxing over the fallen king's face. The hunters took no risks, making sure to drug their prisoners so that they wouldn't be able to fight back with their natural abilities, but even with that, one didn't lightly take the risk to invade a pureblood's mouth, for obvious reasons – if their saliva got into a human's bloodstream, it would be the end, they would inevitably turn.

Kaname's eyes were closed, his lips parted unresponsively, and it wasn't quite clear whether he was conscious or not. His whole body was a mess of welts and bruises, marred all over by blood and fluids, sticky from being used by the troops for several hours, probably uninterruptedly ever since the early afternoon.

The pureblood's wrists were tightly bound together by barbed wire, digging into the skin that was already raw from being tied, and attached firmly to the arm of a heavy-looking ornate chair with sculpted feet. With a flash of understanding, Zero suddenly realized it wasn't a mere chair -- as an additional insult, the soldiers had taken the royal throne from the ruins of the castle and brought it here. Kaname was raped tied to his very throne.

There had been jewels decorating part of the throne, but most had been pried off by greedy soldiers, leaving only empty spots to witness the defiling of the vampire monarchy and its last king.

Zero was terribly unbalanced at the moment, and feared greatly that he might do or say the wrong thing in front of his soldiers. He'd lived so long in an empty void of ashes and nothingness that he felt like he was nearly drowning under the current onslaught of sensations and feelings he had at the sight of Kaname. The pureblood's familiar scent flooded Zero's senses like water to a plant that had been close to withering away – regardless of the fact that Kaname's scent was barely perceivable due to how much he'd been abused and soiled by the countless men who had _used_ him for the past several hours. The scent was still present through his blood, highly fragrant to Zero's vampire senses, and of that there was quite an amount spilled, on Kaname's skin, on the throne, even on the ground. The soldiers had visibly not held back the slightest, either because he was a pureblood and they assumed he would last long enough, or because being the vampire king, he was the very embodiment of the race the hunters hated above all else.

The men were startled by Zero's sudden arrival, but none would dare disobey their commander, and the group that had been apparently waiting for their turn quickly parted to let him pass.  
Upon hearing Zero's orders to back off, the man who was holding Kaname by his hair had a vague look of_ 'can't I finish first?' _on his face for a second, but the withering glare Zero shot him made him quickly lose the impertinent look, and give an embarrassed little salute before letting go of the pureblood and stepping back. The man who had been at Kaname's rear also looked like he was doing a quick mental calculation, and much as he'd have liked to stay, he realized well that the commander was not in a mood for disobedience. Holding back a sigh of frustration, the man pulled out and released the bruising grip he had on Kaname's hips, letting the pureblood fall in an undignified heap, his head lolling against the side of the throne as his body sagged on the ground, no longer supported by anyone but still tied by his wrists to the throne.

Zero glanced at the circle of hunters around him, ordering them quickly. "Out! All of you. I have something to ask the prisoner."

It was certainly a strange choice of a moment to question a prisoner, but Lord Kiryuu was Lord Kiryuu, and no one in that tent was fool enough to challenge him, so the naked ones grabbed their respective garments and they all exited quickly, more or less grumbling about the interruption and about having to wait in the cold outside, but none spoke directly against their commander.

Zero waited until they were all gone and he could sense that they had indeed obeyed and weren't trying to listen in or anything. By now, they knew better than try something foolish like that on him, and he could feel them walking away from the tent, talking to each other in a disappointed tone as they congregated around the nearby fires to warm themselves with the heat of fire and ale.

Zero crouched by the pureblood and surveyed the damage. Kaname was trembling involuntarily, his body racked by tiny little spasms. Zero touched his shoulder tentatively, and the pureblood flinched, not recognizing his touch at first.

_At least he's conscious…_

Ignoring the mess of blood and semen all over Kaname, Zero removed the barbed wire, uncoiling it from around the throne handle and then from the pureblood's wrists as carefully as he could to avoid doing further damage as he pulled out the prongs that were embedded in his skin. Unsupported, Kaname slid further down towards the ground, but Zero controlled the fall, laying him down on his back while holding his head gently. The pureblood's delicate face retained its striking beauty even marred by the numerous bruises and the caked blood that ran from his eyes, nose and corners of the mouth, as well as from a split brow and a number of smaller cuts and lacerations, visibly gotten as he was hit.

"Kaname…"

At the sound of Zero's voice saying his name, Kaname's eyelids shot open, and he had a look of shocked disbelief. He let out a small little choked noise that sounded more like a sound of pain than anything coherent, before he had to squeeze his eyes shut again, moisture from unshed tears making them burn too much to stay open.  
He'd apparently not noticed until now that Zero was present, perhaps because he was too out of it while he was still being raped. Now that he actually realized, it came as quite a shock.

Zero was about to say something, but went silent as he noticed that Kaname's split lips quivered for a moment and parted as he tried to speak.

The pureblood's voice came out so weakened and broken that Zero nearly didn't recognize it. The hunter felt an additional pang in his chest at how terribly different to was from the compelling and in control voice he remembered. But it was what Kaname said that puzzled him even more.

"… I… I though you wouldn't come…"

"What…?" Zero didn't understand what the pureblood was talking about, and pulled him closer carefully, still supporting his head as Kaname visibly didn't have the strength to do so himself. As it was, it looked like the pureblood was putting whatever reserves he still had left all into mustering the force to talk more.

His voice breaking every so often, speech interrupted and slurred, Kaname spilled out what he'd been carrying on his heart for much too long now.

"I waited… so long. So many… years. I endured, hoping you'd return… and even as the war approached the end, I kept on going, knowing there was only doom at the end, but still forcing myself to stay on that path, because I knew this was the only way for you to find me… I've been waiting for you all this time… when it all ended, and they said I was for you, I… it just felt so unbelievable and bizarre. Something too perfect to be true… And then, you… gave me to them instead… But I didn't mind… I didn't mind at all… I just hoped that if I went through it all… then maybe… maybe you'd think I'd suffered enough for you to look at me at least once before the end… I… I tried so hard to atone, but I'm not very good… Will you ever forgive me, Zero…?"

He opened his eyes just enough to see Zero, almost not daring to fully take in the sight of the hunter.

He wasn't even sure the hunter was really there and wasn't an illusion, a wishful phantasm of his tortured imagination. And truth to be said, much as he had desperately needed to ask that one question, he was at a point where he no longer had any hopes that Zero would truly forgive him. Or that he would ever forgive himself, even if the hunter did do it.  
He'd waited much too long, fading hope dying away with each hour spent walking in the tall corridors of the royal castle, listening to his own steps echoing emptily on the cathedral-height ceilings, each instant passing slowly and as tangibly as sand in an hourglass. Each instant of misery as he waited for someone who never came.

Much as he despaired for the inevitable doom of the ones who had appointed him their leader –regardless that he had not desired the title-- he had felt a hidden hope for himself as the war neared its end, thinking that maybe he would get to see Zero again, at least once.

The hunter had never come, but Kaname didn't mind anymore that he would be a prisoner when he finally saw Zero.

But even then, Zero had refused him, had he not? Then it must be that his fate was long sealed, and he had been nothing but a fool clinging to an illusory hope. If Zero wanted his destruction, then so be it. He would suffer, no longer out of a true hope to have any chance of atoning and being forgiven, but merely because the way he saw it, Zero wanted him to suffer this, so he would submit himself to the torture and even to the more unspeakable horrors, and accept it all willingly. Because that blind obedience was the very last thing he had left to offer Zero, even if the hunter might never even know, might never deign to come and look down on him one last time, before or after Kaname's death.

All his life, Kaname had been a passionate person, one who loved wholeheartedly. Much like his heart and soul had belonged entirely to Yuuki –and shattered with her death – he also had long felt he belonged to Zero, and had poured the full force of that broken heart's love into the memory of the hunter, as he desperately waited for him to return, losing more hope with each day that passed.  
He could have left everything behind and chased after him instead, but the way Zero left… Kaname felt that Zero would never forgive him if he went after him, and so he did the only thing he could, and waited, accepting the title of king merely because he felt it was the place where it would be easiest for the hunter to find him if he ever decided to return.

But life was not always made of perfect intentions and understanding, and while Kaname withered away in despair and loneliness, waiting for a forgiveness he desperately needed, Zero thought him dead, and lived in emptiness and silence, blaming himself for having blamed Kaname, hating himself for having let his loved ones die, believing wrong reports and misinformed tales.

Zero's heart, which had been locked away under so many chains and walls that he felt he could never open it again, was now breaking free, the dam that held for much too long finally shattering, tears rolling off his eyes under the overwhelming feeling of love and utter guilt that flooded his body. He hugged the pureblood to his chest in a near painful hold, burying his face against Kaname's shoulder while he sobbed.

Kaname was puzzled, not understanding why Zero was crying, and fearing that perhaps it was proof that it was indeed all an illusion._ Zero had no reason to cry, had he…?  
_In Kaname's eyes, it was already unbelievable that Zero would be here, looking at him, much less holding him gently as he was doing. Wearily forcing his eyes to stay open despite how close to losing conscience he still was, Kaname raised a hand to caress Zero's hair reassuringly, then saw the blood and grime on his hand and decided not to touch the hunter after all. _Mustn't soil him…_

"Zero… don't cry… I have no regrets…"

"Kaname?"

Zero looked up for a second, trying to understand what the other meant. Kaname continued, his voice more and more on the verge of breaking as he fought to remain conscious.

"I'd go through it all again… all over again, no matter how many times it took… just to have you hold me like this… Dying in your arms is not so bad a fate, Zero."

Kaname smiled beautifully at Zero, but the hunter could only stare at him in silence, thick tears rolling down his cheeks and falling heavily onto the pureblood's chest. It wasn't that Zero didn't want to speak, it was merely that the emotion was such that he couldn't find his voice anymore.

Kaname's head lolled to the side weakly, coming to rest against the hunter's upper arm, as his eyes closed softly and his consciousness faded away slowly without that radiant smile ever leaving his lips.

Zero cradled the pureblood's head to his chest gently, murmuring softly "Incorrigible… you were always incorrigible…"

All that Zero could do to hold onto reality was focus with all his will on the barely perceptible thrum of the blood in Kaname's veins, indicating that his heart was still beating. A human may have thought him dead, but Zero's vampire senses told him that Kaname still lived, and that was the most unbelievable luck that an otherwise cruel fate had ever thrown on Zero's path, so he clung onto his unconscious lover with all his might, sobbing softly into Kaname's hair while he cradled him as if he was the most fragile and precious thing in the entire world.

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[tbc…]

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_It almost turned into a deathfic! XD;;; lol  
__But there is still hope... ;D  
_

_If you're wondering why Kaname is so devoted to Zero in the fic, keep in mind the following things:  
He's supposed to love Zero in this fic, and we know how Kaname normally behaves towards his loved one: completely surrendering himself to them, indulging their every whim, doing anything they'd want etc... He's canonically a very self-sacrificing person.  
We see how utterly devoted he is to Yuuki in the manga, so we can imagine it would be similar with Zero if he loved him. :)  
**Spoilery, skip if you didn't read the manga yet:**  
For a concrete example, we know that in the manga, Kaname endured 10 years of agonizing loneliness and carrying the weight of everything all by himself just to give Yuuki a choice. Imagine how he would feel/behave in an AU setting where on top of his normal extreme devotion to his loved one, he also felt terrible guilt for something in the past that shattered his heart and that his surviving loved one blamed him for. (As we saw that Zero had done in the fic before leaving, even if Zero later regretted it and realized how wrong he had been.)  
So yeah, that's it. :)_

_And if you prefer to picture Kaname differently, whether because you prefer him seme rather than uke or something, you can always imagine instead that he's softer because it's AU...*lol*  
_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Wasteland – chapter 3**_

_**Warnings:**__ Angst and limey flavors going back and forth!! *_*/_

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The fragrant vapors of the scented bath filled the air with a pleasant warmth that was comforting without being heavy or stifling.

Kaname blinked softly, drifting in and out of consciousness a few times before he seemed to finally remain awake for long enough to try and find out where he was now. His whole body felt numb, no longer just from the results of the repeated pain and abuse but from how relaxed he was, the deliciously warm water soothing his aching muscles and raw skin. The pain was still there, inevitable after all he went through, but he was gently propped inside a bathtub and had visibly been scrubbed clean and washed thoroughly, most likely in a different water as this one was clean of filth and wonderfully scented with rose salts.  
It was an elegant metal bathtub, comfortably curved inside and with one edge higher than the other to serve as a headrest. It was set in the center of an ornately furnished tent, on a ground covered with countless rugs, not far from a brazier where a fire burn brightly making the air as warm and pleasant as was the water of the bath.

Despite the comfortable setting that beckoned him to drift back into a much needed sleep, Kaname panicked at first, not seeing Zero anywhere near and thinking he'd either dreamed meeting him, or that the hunter had left him again. Kaname had gone through too much to think coherently and make any proper attempt of using what he could currently access of his power to sense where Zero was.

Luckily, the hunter walked back into Kaname's field of vision right about then, having felt the pureblood's consciousness stirring. He was no longer wearing his coat, and Kaname couldn't help but notice that the casual pair of pants and shirt Zero wore accentuated beautifully his lean body. His sleeves were folded, revealing his forearms, and he was carrying a plush towel of a soft peachy color that seemed to match the overall feel and look of the lush interior of the tent they were currently in.  
The place wasn't anywhere as dauntingly large as the soldier's communal tent had been, but it was countless times cozier, even if some of the decoration was a tidbit overdone –_ animal pelts over the furniture? Most definitely soft and warm, but a little overboard perhaps, even for hunters, no?_

Kaname remembered now the things he'd barely registered during the time he spent drifting back and forth at the very edge of consciousness. He remembered Zero holding him by the throne, then picking him up gently after composing himself, and carrying him out in his arms, declaring to the hunters that he had changed his mind after all and would 'keep the prisoner for himself' as was the original plan.

There had been countless grumbling and disappointed looks, but no one spoke against their leader, especially not to complain about him keeping what was due to him by rank and valor according to their traditions. The soldiers who missed their chance to have a go at Kaname simply glared at their fellow hunters who had more luck and had had their turn with the king before the commander came to get him, and who were now bragging about their luck in not having been on duty during the afternoon.

Kaname had blanked out a few times while Zero carried him, exhaustion and shock winning even over pureblood stamina – a lesser man wouldn't have survived the ordeal at all, and it was already an impressive testimony to Kaname's strength that he'd been conscious when Zero found him— but he woke up a few times, and remembered fuzzily hearing Zero call out for one of his officers and talk to him about a tent exchange, before Kaname passed out again, only waking up much later in the bathtub, where he was currently soaking.

Zero looked at him with eyes so filled with warmth that Kaname felt his heart swell in his chest to the point that it couldn't possibly contain it. Tears burned in his eyes, and he could only do his very best to try not to spill them while he tried to overcome the huge lump he felt in his throat, that was preventing him from speaking. At long last, he finally managed to voice out "why…?"

_Why are you here? Why are you being so gentle? Is this a dream? It will hurt so much more when reality returns full blast.  
_He'd grown too used to living in hopelessness, and was afraid of hoping again and getting hurt as badly as he did in the past.

The tears spilled down freely at last, and Kaname almost felt wrong for letting them fall into such a perfectly clean water, which he realized now must have been poured by Zero.

Zero... Who was still smiling warmly, and at whom Kaname was inevitably staring, tears rolling freely down his cheeks, unable to say anything more to the hunter.

Zero raised a hand gently and wiped a tear off Kaname's cheek in a soft caress of his thumb.

"Shh, don't cry anymore, my love, it's okay now…"

It felt so weird to see Kaname in front of him like that, and to call him _"my love" _so freely and without hesitation. It awed Zero, who had so long believed he had no more heart, and yet who now felt that very same heart throbbing and overflowing with the need to be gentle to the pureblood and make up for all the horror he'd gone through.

Not out of misplaced duty, not even out of guilt for having caused so much of that pain. Out of love.

Zero was amazed to find himself strangely at peace with his feelings now –apart from the guilt-- as if having Kaname here and now at his reach strangely made it all okay and gave his heart a balance he could not remember having ever really had before. Rather than dwelling in what should have been or whether or not this feeling was 'right', Zero could finally only think of protecting Kaname, comforting him and fixing all that he screwed up in the past.

Not to make up for past failures, but in hopes of building a future ahead, one in which hopefully the two would be okay.

It was a far jump, built on dangerous assumptions of a relationship that might not even exactly fully exist at this point, but the look of utter awe in Kaname's eyes told Zero that it was possible, and that as long as the two of them wanted it, they could make whatever future they wanted.

Kaname's face was still sporting a puzzled expression of awed disbelief, and unable to hold any longer, Zero reached closer, cupping Kaname's cheek gently and pressing their lips together in a remarkably gentle kiss, before whispering "I'll never leave you alone again."

Kaname buried his face against Zero's shoulder and let out a choked sob in disbelief.

Reaching into the water, Zero slid an arm beneath the pureblood's knees and another around his back, and lifted him out. Kaname gasped in surprise at first, but couldn't help burying his face in the crook of Zero's neck and melting into his embrace._ If this is just an illusion, then so be it. _He would cling to it with the determination of utter despair, and enjoy it as long as it lasted. Shivering softly in Zero's arms, Kaname clung to him while the hunter carried him to a bed, in a different 'room' in the tent, a subdivision separated from the main area by an extra flap of the thick canvassy fabric that made up the interior walls for extra insulation from the cold.

The furnishings in the room were as ornate as the rest of the place, and another brazier sat in a corner of it, embers glowing lazily inside it, ensuring that none of the outside cold disturbed the people inside, regardless of the biting frost of the winter that was currently sweeping through the camp outside.

Around the same time elsewhere, Zero's right-hand officer was donning a third thick coat and cursing the horribly cold winter while walking circles rubbing his own arms.  
He didn't mind switching tents, and was glad to be of help for his friend and commander, to whom he was flawlessly loyal… but in the exchange he'd inherited Zero's utterly spartan tent and was currently freezing in it while Zero and Kaname were quite cozy in the lieutenant's luxurious tent… Zero had never felt a need for fancy interiors, but he realized his own tent was far from comfortable, and wanted to give Kaname a more pleasant place to spend the night. So for once Zero had found an use for his lieutenant's taste for overdone interiors after all...

Zero placed Kaname on the bed carefully, laying the pureblood down on a second towel he had set there in preparation, and using the one that was draped over his arm to begin gently drying him.

Kaname let him do it in silence, still a bit too shaken and too exhausted to do much without taking the risk of passing out –and he desperately wanted to stay awake and bask in this moment as long as he could.  
But when Zero dried certain parts of him that were still much too painful, Kaname recoiled slightly, pulling his legs together and covering his lips with a hand in a late attempt to silence the soft whimper he'd let out. His other hand found its way to Zero's wrist, stopping him as their eyes met and Kaname couldn't help but ask "…is this all… actually real?"

Kaname's breath caught in his throat when Zero leaned in and captured his lips in another kiss, this one more sensual than the chaste one given when Kaname was in the bathtub. The kiss deepened as Zero sat down on the bed, leaning over Kaname, and the pureblood slid his arms around the hunter's waist as if he was afraid Zero would fade away like a dream if he didn't cling to him.

"Kaname…"

The hunter trailed his lips down the pureblood's jaw line and then onto his neck, kissing the sensitive area with the utmost care, and earning a delicious shudder from his lover.

Zero was finally sure of his feelings.

He'd long hesitated, even back when the two were together but also in love with Yuuki. His hesitation, coupled with his hatred for vampires and the terrible unbalance he'd found himself in back then had caused them years of wasted time, and a world of pain to the two of them, especially Kaname.

The most recent pain he was still suffering from was directly caused by Zero, and it being accidental didn't change the fact that the hunter would take a while to forgive himself, if he ever really did.

Zero realized well how much anguish he'd caused Kaname and himself because he wasn't sure of his own feelings. He didn't want to ever dwell on the past and lose track of the present again. Seeing Kaname humiliated by the soldiers had triggered a powerful protectiveness in him that was still surging through his body full force right now, finding an outlet in each gentle caress Zero's fingers ran down the pureblood's side as he leaned over him.

_Forget the past doubts and uncertainties._ He wasn't about to waste this second chance that life had so unexpectedly put in front of them. He'd lingered long enough in the past, trying to fool himself into believing he could live without this pureblood. He would never again let the past or his own doubts ever part him from Kaname. He'd lost him once, nearly lost him forever if he hadn't arrived on time. He would _never_ make the same mistake again.

At the present moment, that all-encompassing urge was translating itself into an irrepressible desire to hold and comfort Kaname, to shower him with gentle caresses and to watch him shudder beautifully as he'd been doing when Zero's fingers brushed his skin.  
On a larger scale, Zero realized that it meant a lot would be changing in his life as well. In the back of his mind, secondary to the current need to lavish attention on Kaname, gears were already turning to figure out what he'd have to do; he planned to resign from his rank among the hunter troops the very next day. The war was over anyway. The hunters hoped he'd stay, but they no longer _needed_ him to survive. He would hand his command over to his lieutenant, -- who may have strange taste for furnishings, but who would make a solid and just leader, and he would leave the matter of reorganizing the world and fixing the differences between their races to the politicians and the pacifists, who'd been already working hard at that cause long before the war ever started.

Before, Zero had been ready to accept whatever position the hunters asked him to take over after the war, merely because his life was like a boat without a rudder. But now, he had a purpose and a direction.

If Kaname would still have him, he wanted nothing more than leave everything behind and take the pureblood far away, where they may both finally live at peace and no longer have to worry about this world's disputes and whatever it may otherwise drag them into if they stayed.

_The question was, would Kaname still want him?_

The pureblood had been ready to die because he thought his loved one would never want him... _But after all he went through, would he be able to forgive him still? Would he ever feel like being with him…? _Much as Zero would have liked to just keep enjoying the moment and caressing the pureblood forever and ever, he feared that he might be delaying the question he feared, and making assumptions that, contrary to his past habits, may for once be too optimistic…

He forced himself to let go for a moment and to search the pureblood's eyes questioningly.

"Kaname… Are you just letting me touch you for the sake of the past or… or… I…" _I fear I've done too much for you to forgive me._

But Kaname knew what Zero was going to ask before the hunter even ordered his mind enough to voice the words aloud, and he raised a gentle hand to caress Zero's hair, wrapping an arm and then the other around the hunter's neck, pulling him down towards him –or more exactly, guiding him down, as he currently lacked the strength to pull Zero down if the hunter didn't follow his lead.

Kaname pressed his lips to Zero's, tentatively at first, then deepening the kiss more and more, arching up to better meet the hunter with his body as well as his lips, the latter becoming flushed from the contact made rough by the passion. Kaname ran the tip of his tongue teasingly over Zero's lips as he parted the kiss, before smiling lovingly at him and whispering "do you really need to ask? Is my answer not obvious enough in the way every inch of my body and soul yearns for you so much?"

"Kaname…"

Zero was being as careful as he could to avoid further hurting Kaname, but he leaned in further, balancing himself with his forearms on the bed on each side of Kaname's head, a leg between the pureblood's as he kissed him back passionately, sliding the tip of his tongue into Kaname's mouth finally, and feeling the pureblood shudder beautifully under him. Kaname welcomed the delicious invasion and sucked on Zero's tongue, feeling renewed tears stinging in his eyes, this time from the sheer happiness of tasting his lover again after having missed him for so long. Their tongues briefly fought for dominance as each wanted to taste the other deeply and to prolongate the moment as much as they could before finally having to briefly part for air, inevitably laughing together at how eager they were for each other.

Both were starved for contact -- not anyone's contact, only each other's touch could sate that hunger. They yearned to feel the other's touch and rediscover every inch of each other's body, which they had been denied for far too long.

But Zero was afraid of hurting Kaname in the pureblood's current state, and the hesitation showed in his overly careful caresses, and the way he was ever so afraid of resting too much of his weight on Kaname's body, until the pureblood chuckled softly and arched up to press himself against the hunter's taut stomach, letting him feel that hurt or not, he was perfectly aroused now, and terribly needy.

Kaname whispered silkily against Zero's skin, "Uhmm, Zero… If you're so worried about my injuries… then make me forget how I got them…"  
There was a very clear invitation in the tone of his voice and the way Kaname raised his knees up higher on each side of Zero's hips, that left no doubts on how exactly the pureblood wanted Zero to make him forget... and yet, unwittingly, a hint of fear briefly slipped its way into his seductive voice.  
Their eyes met quickly, Zero's gaze showing how surprised he was by the pureblood's words, before anxiously searching Kaname's face for any hints of sarcasm or reprobation. But there were none at all. To Zero's renewed surprise, he could no find no blame whatsoever in Kaname's passionate eyes, regardless of how much the hunter blamed himself.

There was only sultry desire in Kaname's gaze, and… Zero caught also another glint of that deeply hidden fear, which Kaname was trying his very best to harness and not let it escape and take over him completely. But it was so very close to the edge…

.

.

[tbc]

* * *

_Talk about one-shot ran out of control. XD;; It has currently four chapters.  
__I was going to go on tweaking more, but I'm falling asleep on my keyboard, so I'll just post it finally. XD;_


	4. Chapter 4

_**

* * *

  
Wasteland – chapter 4**_

_**Warnings:**__ Lemon, FINALLY. XD *lol*  
And this chapter should be longer than the previous ones, because I didn't want to cut in the middle of the scene._

_A big thank you to Blackened Wing for being awesome in general and for having read it first and reassured me when I was having my running-in-circles-angsting about the fic. XD;;  
_

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Kaname whispered silkily against Zero's skin, "Uhmm, Zero… If you're so worried about my injuries… then make me forget how I got them…"

There was a very clear invitation in the tone of his voice and the way Kaname raised his knees up higher on each side of Zero's hips, that left no doubts on _how_ exactly the pureblood wanted Zero to make him forget... and yet, unwittingly, a hint of fear briefly slipped its way into his seductive voice.  
Their eyes met quickly, Zero's gaze showing how surprised he was by the pureblood's words, before anxiously searching Kaname's face for any hints of sarcasm or reprobation. But there were none at all. To Zero's renewed surprise, he could no find no blame whatsoever in Kaname's passionate eyes, regardless of how much the hunter blamed himself.

There was only sultry desire in Kaname's gaze, and… Zero caught also another glint of that deeply hidden fear, which Kaname was trying his very best to harness to not let it escape and take over him completely.

But it was so very close to the edge…

The pureblood might put up a façade of perfect control with his sexy demeanor that Zero had missed so badly, but inside he was still hurting deeply. That teasing challenge when he asked Zero to make him forget was not just seduction — Kaname really did mean it. In some deep, almost primal level, he needed this additional level of intimacy not merely out of desire, but because he desperately needed his lover to wipe from his heart and soul the tainted marks that rape had placed there. His body would heal swiftly enough and leave no outward marks of what had happened, but only Zero could soothe Kaname's aching heart.

Kaname didn't have to voice the embarrassing truth aloud, however. Zero saw it in his eyes, and realized without words how important that was for him. The hunter got up, landing a gentle peck on Kaname's lips before reassuring him with a promise to be back in a second.

Zero quickly scanned the tent with his eyes, looking for any places likely to have a bottle of oil, but a more in-depth search of each of those drawers and containers left him with no results.  
There _had_ to be a tube or a vial of it somewhere! The real owner of that tent was a perfectly active young man, and quite popular with the female hunters.

Zero gave up the search when he found a tin of vaseline, which he knew his lieutenant kept to grease the junction points of the body armor he wore in battle. Vaseline made perfect lube and Zero belatedly realized that perhaps that was exactly the answer to the puzzling absence of another tube or bottle of it… one served two uses perfectly well.

He headed back, undressing while he rushed, his eagerness making him trip over his pants for a moment and nearly fall over right as he came into the room, causing Kaname to inevitably break out laughing at the unexpected display.

Seeing that mirthful light in Kaname's eyes as he laughed was like a balm to Zero's soul, filling it with hope that things would be okay after all, and that Kaname's mental scars would hopefully heal up fine, in time.

Now as naked as his lover was, Zero climbed back onto the bed, keeping his movements gentle and reassuring, even more so after he realized that regardless of the desire in the pureblood's eyes, Kaname was also unconsciously shrinking back a little, involuntarily tense, both deeply wanting and slightly fearing the contact that would follow.

Zero straddled his lover's hips, bending forward to leave a trail of butterfly kisses along Kaname's face and down until his ear, where he whispered the pureblood's name heatedly, the desire in his voice echoing Kaname's own need, and bringing a deeper shade to his beautifully flushed face.

That initial distraction passed – the pureblood was so into it that he hadn't even noticed at which moment Zero had popped the top of the vaseline tin off—Kaname felt a sudden spike of delicious heat shoot through his otherwise tense stomach. Zero was sliding vaseline-coated fingers along the pureblood's arousal, wrapping his fist around it and pumping it irresistibly, not only to pleasure his lover but also to coat his whole length… the hunter then spread his own legs farther apart and lowered himself carefully, determined to impale himself on Kaname's heated flesh.

"Ze…Zero?! What are you doing…?"

Back in the past, Zero had always been extremely reluctant to allow Kaname to take him. He had viewed it as something that gave the pureblood even more power over him, an idea that Zero hadn't been ready to accept then.  
Even when they had become much closer under Yuuki's encouragements, they still did it almost exclusively with Zero topping, the hunter only very rarely ever allowing Kaname to claim him, and even then only in particularly emotional moments when he had allowed himself to concede for a moment that _this_ pureblood might be different from purebloods in general, even if he still hadn't been quite sure then whether what he was doing was right or wrong; many of those delightful nights had ended with bitterly regretful mornings, followed each time by days of Zero avoiding Kaname until he'd momentarily sorted out his feelings about having allowed the pureblood such intimacy.

But now, all those past hesitancies and uncertainties appeared so foolish at Zero's eyes and were readily left behind at the face of his realization of just _how much_ Kaname meant for him. He had to nearly lose him to finally understand. Never again he would allow his fears or past beliefs to come between them and tear them apart. He'd wronged them both for a lifetime, now it was time to set things right.

But before Zero could impale himself on his lover's arousal, Kaname's gentle hands gripped the hunter's thighs to stop him.

Kaname was smiling up at Zero with a loving gleam in his eyes… which were wet, Zero realized. The emotion of seeing the hunter so willing to give himself to him entirely brought tears to Kaname's eyes.  
But now was not the right moment. He still remembered so well how difficult that had been for Zero in the past, and much as he understood the hunter's need to prove himself, he couldn't let him do it so soon and risk reawakening fears from the past.

"There will be time for that later, Zero… I wouldn't want you to do it out of a feeling of duty. Nor do I want you to risk regretting it later."

Years before, aside from the pride issues that had been present at the very beginning of their relationship, once Kaname had been sure of his feelings for Zero he'd had no trouble in letting Zero claim his blood and his body alike, and he knew that the years that passed since then hadn't changed that in the least.  
The violent experience he'd lived a mere few hours before, however, was sending repeated little waves of fear rolling through the pureblood's stomach, fighting a ruthless battle with his desire and dampening his resolve each time that unwelcome images of the countless rapes he'd suffered flashed through his mind. Even now, Kaname's legs felt heavy like lead; they'd been spread too far apart for too long, held forcibly in place while unspeakable things were done to his unwilling body. Even as his body tried to relax against the soft mattress he was resting on, he had to concentrate with all his will on Zero's touch so that his mind wouldn't slip back into the horrible nightmare he'd just escaped.

But that was also precisely why Kaname deeply felt he _needed_ Zero to take him, on an almost primal level.

He was deadly afraid that if he let that trauma set the way it was, it would become a scar etched upon his very soul, something that he wasn't sure whether he would ever be able to fully erase. Perhaps he wasn't in the best condition to be making such decisions, but he deeply believed that his lover's touch could cleanse his soul and replace the memories of rape with ones of a much desired and much awaited penetration. It didn't matter that he was still physically aching in a near unbearable manner in some places, or that he couldn't do anything to stop the irrational fear that inevitably nagged at him, flashing the horrible images in his mind.

It was precisely because of it all: if Zero didn't take him, Kaname feared he'd never stand back up completely whole again.

And Zero saw that fear in Kaname's eyes and understood. Belying their difficulties in understanding each other in the past, the connection they shared at the present moment was such that Zero knew exactly what Kaname feared and why the pureblood was so intent on being taken.

Zero was no psychologist and couldn't make any possible guess on whether Kaname's idea of trauma control had any basis or was completely far-fetched, but the human psyche and the vampire one could be so different… what truly mattered was that --logical or not-- Kaname did deeply need this, and only Zero could give it to him. The pain from the wounds was beyond secondary, in Kaname's eyes.  
The hunter cast aside his hesitation and moved backwards on the bed a little, caressing the pureblood's long legs as he gently lifted them until they were parted aside and resting on each side of Zero's hips as he gracefully slid between them to lean over his lover.

Kaname shuddered softly, fear and anticipation mixing in his eyes as he watched Zero's fingers sweep another dollop of vaseline, the hunter's hand disappearing between the pureblood's legs. Kaname squeezed his eyes shut tightly, bracing himself with clenched teeth, but there was no contact, and he heard his lover's voice gently beckoning him. "Shhh, open your eyes Kaname, don't hide from me… Look at me while I do this…"

Kaname opened his eyes, to find his lover smiling at him reassuringly. Zero brushed his lips gently on the tip of Kaname's nose in a playful caress to try and lighten the pureblood's tense mood, and made sure he had his full attention before sliding his lubed fingers in a careful circle around the edge of his lover's entrance, wanting to reassure him as well as ensure that the already painful area wouldn't risk being dry and hurt more when he actually penetrated him.  
Kaname tensed instantly upon contact, fingers clenching against the sheets as an uncertain look took over his features, but he held his lover's gaze as he had asked.

Zero was watching Kaname's reactions carefully, waiting until his tenseness eased up a little before he deepened the caress, fingertips brushing tantalizingly around the edge of the pureblood's intimacy, the tip of one finger already pushing further and teasing the entrance. Zero continued whispering gentle words and caressing Kaname with soft and caring touches until the pureblood's gaze lost a little of the fear and regained a more heated look, before Zero tentatively slid a finger in just a little ways deeper.

Kaname sucked his breath in, both from how much he wanted it and inevitably also because the area was still very raw and sensitive. His pureblood healing was terribly slowed down by the drugs the soldiers had pumped him full off to block his powers, and as such, much as he terribly wanted Zero, even just a finger was really pushing it, at the moment. Utter disappointment and frustration flashed on Kaname's face and he looked up worriedly, a small part of him irrationally fearing that his lover would feel let down.

But Zero had a solution for this too, and whispered into Kaname's ear an invitation that completely took the pureblood by surprise.

Zero was offering him his blood.

The one thing the hunter had _always_ denied him, even when they had become lovers, even the few times in the past when Zero had allowed Kaname to top him.

"Zero… I couldn't…! You never wanted me to…"

The hunter stopped him before Kaname finished. "Everything is different now, Kaname. This isn't because I want to prove something to myself or to you. I just really want us to be together… as… as equals." Zero looked down with a slightly embarrassed expression, inevitable guilt flickering on his face whenever he thought of the way he'd handled certain things before.  
Kaname was a pureblood and Zero an ex-human, but it hadn't been Kaname who looked down on Zero, in the past. The hunter's hatred of vampires made that ideas of equality had been very difficult to accept, years before. As they became lovers, Zero had constantly been torn between accepting that Kaname was different and refusing to upset his view of the world and vampires in general.  
But so much had changed, both back then and so much more now. Humans could be as ruthlessly cruel as vampires, and Zero had witnessed it countless times. The most recent example was one he would never forget, even long after the marks would fade from Kaname's body.

Leaving aside the verbal explanations for a more direct coaxing, Zero ran his lips along Kaname's jaw line and dropped them onto the pureblood's graceful neck, softly mouthing the ultra-sensitive bite area in an enticing manner, tongue flicking out onto the pureblood's skin every so often.

It had the desired effect, Kaname couldn't help but squirm deliciously beneath Zero's ministrations, soft little moans escaping his lips as the overwhelming sensations rippled through the pureblood's whole body, easing away the tension in his muscles and mirroring the hunger that he felt until Kaname couldn't help anymore but drop his lips onto Zero's neck as well. The hunter shuddered involuntarily when he felt the pureblood's extended fangs scrape his skin softly as Kaname lavished his lover's neck with attention and a rising need.

"Ze…Zero… uhn…"

He wanted to tell the hunter to stop egging him on before he became unable to control himself and really bit him, but Zero wanted exactly that, and only pushed further, nipping carefully Kaname's bite area to push him closer to the edge, knowing that in his current state the pureblood wouldn't be able to resist long.  
Kaname whimpered softly, desire burning harder inside him, barely able to resist sinking his fangs into the offered neck he was hungrily licking. He wrapped his trembling arms around Zero's back and clung to him like a drowning man to a plank.

"A-are you really sure?"

_Ah, Kaname… you hesitate still? You were always too gentle for your own good!_

Zero wished he'd realized that much longer ago, but hopefully it was never too late.

"Never been so sure of anything, my love." He whispered before returning to suck on the pureblood's sensitive neck, being careful to not pierce it with his --now also very aroused-- fangs. Kaname wasn't in a condition to have blood taken from him at the moment, and Zero just wanted to give him that pleasure without weakening him.

It was bittersweet, in a way, when the pureblood finally did pierce the hunter's skin. Zero tensed for a fraction of a moment, instinctively, then forced himself to relax, marveling in how gentle Kaname could be even when to terribly needy. The bite only stung for a second or two, pleasure flooding the hunter's body instantly afterwards, radiating from the bite as Kaname drank. Zero couldn't hold back a moan that vibrated against Kaname's throat.

The pureblood was in his own heaven, in a world all made of Zero. The hunter was pressed over him, his finger still _inside_ him, and Zero was now also_ in_ him through his blood, something Kaname had terribly wanted for far too long, and despaired of always having it be denied.

Kaname felt as if he was finally whole, the love flowing in through Zero's blood filling up the broken places of his heart in need of mending. He nearly sobbed with delight, and actually whimpered softly –out of pleasure this time-- when he felt the hunter's fingers resume their movements, a second one gently sliding into the pureblood with the utmost care now that Zero could tell that Kaname's body was quickly strengthening with the much needed blood.

Kaname's legs slid up little ways, his knees pressing on each side of Zero as his breathing quickened and the pleasure from the hunter's touch and the blood flowing into him made his mind spin with delight.

Kaname was drinking slowly, savoring each little draught, taking as small a mouthful as he could each time, letting the blood roll on his tongue to savor it as long as possible before swallowing and feeling the warmth and Zero's presence flooding his whole body in a delightful manner. He wanted the moment to last forever, but it would obviously not last very long without endangering the hunter if he drank too fast, so he was as slow as he possibly could be to prolongate the mind-blowing delight. He was so lost in his paradise of feeling Zero both inside and outside him that he didn't even notice how much his own body had relaxed meanwhile, until Zero pulled out his fingers, judging that the pureblood was ready to be taken.

Kaname interrupted his drinking for a split second to let out a half-mewl of protest at the loss, not realizing at first what was about to happen, until the hunter chuckled softly by his ear and positioned himself at his entrance.

The pureblood was surprised to find out that the apprehension from earlier and the horrifying flashes didn't come now, and all he could think of was how much he wanted Zero to fill him completely, to make him whole not just in feeling and with his blood, but also with his body.

He wrapped his arms tighter around Zero's back, pressing his forehead against Zero's shoulder when the hunter slid in. Zero was extra careful and went slowly, going only little ways at a time to leave Kaname enough time to adapt to the hard and stretching width, so much more than the fingers had been.

Shuddering breaths were leaving Kaname's trembling lips as his body was trying to process the onslaught of sensations, lost in the pleasure of his lover's blood, touch, and now flesh. But there was no fear on Kaname's face, just absolute bliss at being claimed at last by the one he'd waited for so many years.

Kaname had always been an extremely devoted person when it came to love, and it had torn his heart to be separated from the only person he had left that he loved with all his heart. Having Zero in his arms again was so unimaginably beautiful that Kaname's still aching mind had trouble processing it, automatically assuming it could only be an illusion.

Even now that Zero was buried deeply inside the pureblood, Kaname still thought he was living nothing but a dream, and that in the morning he'd find the hunter gone and his life a pit of misery once more.

The thought brought an inevitable pang of agony each time his mind brushed it, but Kaname was focusing all his will in losing himself in what he believed to be an illusion, living in the moment and refusing to think of the bleak future he believed was ahead. A vampire's mind could have a lot more power over the body than a human's, and with the shaken state the pureblood was still in, it was not a far leap for him to be unable to quite discern reality from illusion at that moment, even though the enrapturing sensations rippling deliciously through his body felt a lot more real than he remembered any of his daydreams to have ever felt, the times he tried to get his mind to fool his body into believing he wasn't so terribly alone.

But in his eyes, it didn't matter whether this was the most real illusion he'd ever lived or whether it just felt that way because of all the horror he'd recently gone through. He'd enjoy it to the maximum, and say nothing of his fears to not risk shattering the moment.

A part of him did hope it was all real, but he'd hoped so much in the past already. He'd gazed at the horizon for hours at a time each day, from the tall towers of the royal castle, burning his eyes with the sunlight as he waited and waited for someone that never came, not daring to blink much, least he missed to see him. He'd despaired of hoping once his heart was too broken for him to go on fooling himself.

But this… the way Zero held him, the way the hunter was now kissing him and making eye contact while whispering gentle words as he pulled out of his body carefully and then back in in tentative thrusts that sent irresistible little waves of pleasure racking through the pureblood's most sensitive areas… it gave him more hope for the future than anything before had. And quite frankly, the pureblood felt so broken and had been so ready to give up everything, that in his eyes it didn't matter anymore whether it would all crumble to dust with the first ray of the morning, a new day coming to tell him that it was just a dream and he was to be executed or something. It didn't matter anymore.

_All that mattered was Zero, right here and right now._

Kaname let go of all conscious thought and coherent considerations, and let his mind and body be swallowed by the pleasure as Zero's hips bucked with more speed now as the hunter grew confident that his pureblood lover was writhing under him with nothing but absolute bliss, all aches and wounds forgotten at the face of the all-consuming rapturous pleasure invading every corner of his senses. Zero was not only claiming his body that way, but also roaming his hands over Kaname's chest, his sensitive neck, down his ribs, gripping his hips, caressing his thighs, so many delightful touches that made Kaname unable to even think clearly anymore.

Strengthened by Zero's blood and no longer suffering as much from the wounds nor weakened enough to risk losing conscience at any moment just from the building pleasure, Kaname could fully enjoy the moment to its fullest, and thrashed on the bed beautifully, head thrown back, dark hair splayed on the contrasting sheets, lips parted as a string of moans and delighted gasps escaped them, until the build up was too much and he had to actually arch up against Zero, clinging to him and trying to meet his movements to deepen the penetration and prolongate the moment where the hunter's arousal would press onto that one spot that made Kaname feel like he would pass out with the onslaught of pleasure. Soon, whatever control he still might have over himself was long gone, and all he could do was rock into Zero's thrusts while crying out his name in mindless bliss, over and over.

The way the pureblood was coming completely undone under him was driving Zero crazy with delight as well, and pushing him closer and closer to the edge. When Kaname begun to hoarsely sob out his name among pleasured pants and cries of pleasure, Zero nearly climaxed right then, but held himself back with all his might, wanting to prolongate the moment and to wait for Kaname, although visibly the pureblood wasn't very far either.

Zero groaned Kaname's name too, through clenched teeth, feeling too good to trust his voice to regain any composure. At long last, even that last resistance ceded when Zero heard the pureblood start calling out his name louder and louder as he neared the brink.

The hunter finally decided that whatever the nearest guard may think if he overheard them mattered little to nothing compared to the moment at hand, and let go of his inhibitions, joining his lover in a deliciously uncontrollable fall into an ocean of pleasure that swept right through their bodies and minds as they reached climax together, heated cries audible quite far into the hunter's encampment.

In the general vicinity of the tent, a number of the hunter soldiers had been gathering in a more or less discreet attempt to eavesdrop on their commander's sexual prowess, which they expected must rival his feats of arms, and which was something they hadn't had the occasion to hear before due to Zero's inexistent sex life.

In a military camp in constant movement and where the men all lived in canvassy tents, curiosity and gossip where inevitable, so the spying attempts quickly lost whatever semblant of discretion they had initially had, and the crowd in the surroundings of the tent grew to a larger and larger number as the time passed and as things inside became noisier and thus more interesting for the curious and lecherous ears nearby.

They had been listening in on whatever they could catch of the sounds coming from within the tent, unable to know exactly what was happening but exchanging garish comments and crude jokes about the vampire king and what they believed he must be suffering inside the tent.

Until suddenly, the crowd fell silent with shock, recognizing their commander's voice filled with lust and arousal as he called out the enemy's name with an intensity and passion that were unmistakably that of a lover rather than someone claiming a prisoner by force as they had expected.

They realized now that the prisoner too, called their commander by his given name rather than rank, and it was not fear or pain but absolute delight that they could hear in his voice.

The men looked at each other, some seeming lost, others already sporting scandalized expressions of disapproval, not sure on how to voice their thoughts on the subject, or whether or not this new development should be taken as a betrayal on the part of their commander.

Oblivious to the entire universe but each other, Zero and Kaname held each other close, trembling hands caressing spent bodies, still tingling as the powerful orgasm faded away leaving them delicious sated and so lost in one another that they were completely unaware of how far they had been heard, or of the dangerous wind of distrust that was quickly threatening to build up among the crowd gathered outside.

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[tbc...]

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_Yesss. I managed another cliffhanger, hahaha. *is shot* XD;;;  
__It MIGHT end in the next chapter. Might. I never know with my crazy Muses. XD;_


	5. Chapter 5

_**Wasteland – chapter 5 – Epilogue**_

_**Warnings:**__ The fic is now complete~! ^_^/_

_Also warning: There's an OC in this chapter, but he was a necessary plot device._

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He wasn't used to waking up in the morning. Which was quite natural since he was a vampire.

But then, there were so many things he wasn't used to. Such as the way his body was aching so much that he just wished he could close his eyes again and pass out until the dull pain in his muscles was gone.

But that would be unwise, when you had no idea whatsoever of where you were or who might be holding you captive.

The pureblood opened an eye drowsily, then sucked his breath in and buried his face into the pillow when the light flooded him mercilessly, pain invading his senses. It was quite dim in the tent, but he was terribly tired and his senses were extra sensitive, even more so than usual.  
Even the slightest amount of sunlight was enough to hurt a pureblood's eyes, and Kaname's current state made it difficult to put up his usual mask of stoicism.

And yet, the aches in his body weren't exactly _all_ unpleasant. There was a general dull pain that was most unwelcome, but other than that, his body felt deliciously relaxed and pleasantly spent. His head was spinning a little though, and he wasn't quite sure where he was. An unknown bed, in a luxurious tent.

The pureblood sat up quickly to try and assess his surroundings, but winced and immediately regretted his decision as the pain in his backside made itself much more noticeable now that he was sitting.

Lifting the sheets to see, he found that he was naked as he thought. Not to mention that he felt rather sticky. A flush burned in his face as he tried and immediately failed to ignore the question in his mind.

_If last night's blissful abandon was but an illusion, then who had claimed his body...?_

A tremor shook him at the memory of the things that happened of which he was sure, the ones that tore him apart the previous day, and he grit his teeth to hold back the moisture he already felt forming in his eyes. The memories he knew to be real would haunt him forever, but the ones afterwards, the ones that he desperately wished had truly happened, were the ones he knew could only be fake. The memories of Zero coming for him, holding him and telling him things he'd dreamed so often of hearing… Zero touching him in ways he didn't dare hope for anymore…

The misery of waking up alone as he had feared and expected, the horror of realizing it was indeed all a dream threatened to finish breaking him, when something snapped him out of his musings very suddenly and unexpectedly.

An unknown young man with light brown hair had opened the flap of the tent and entered the room.

Startled, the pureblood shrank back on the bed, pulling the sheets to himself in a quick attempt to cover his nudity, a miserable look taking over his features as he struggled to make the fear on his face look like fury. He desperately attempted to regain a certain composure while trying to determine the intruder's intentions, painfully reminded of how terribly vulnerable his position currently was.

Much to the pureblood's surprise, rather than doing something to him, the young man stepped back with an apologetic look on his face, rising his hands in a reassuring gesture. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry, I didn't know you were awake. This is my tent, I just came in to pick up some of my things. If I had known, I'd have warned you before entering the room."

The pureblood could only stare at him in incomprehension, a vague look of puzzlement intermingling now with the worry that was still present on his face.

Realizing that perhaps vampires were more self-conscious about their nudity than humans –especially humans used to military life and sharing commodities-- the young man quickly turned around to avoid disturbing the pureblood any further with his gaze, and stood facing the entry of the room instead. "I'm so sorry if I offended you. Would you like some clothes, by any chance?"

This gesture puzzled Kaname even more than the apologies themselves. The way the man left himself completely open for an attack was so impossibly unexpected from a hunter that the pureblood just had to ask. "You would turn your back on an enemy?"

It was the young hunter's turn to look surprised by the question, but his expression quickly turned into a contagious smile as he turned his head to speak. "But you're not an enemy! You're Zero's long lost love..."

_What?!_

Kaname's shock at realizing that perhaps it wasn't all an illusion as he had assumed was such that he dropped the sheets he was still holding to himself.

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* * *

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A few hours earlier, the commander of the hunter forces and the former king of the vampires were losing themselves in each other's arms and in the sheer delight of finding each other again after so many years apart.

In the general vicinity of the tent, a number of the hunter soldiers had been gathering, in a more or less discreet attempt to eavesdrop. They had been listening in on whatever they could catch of the sounds coming from within the tent, unable to know exactly what was happening but exchanging garish comments and crude jokes about the vampire king and what they believed he must be suffering inside the tent.

Until suddenly, the crowd fell silent with shock, recognizing their commander's voice filled with lust and arousal as he called out the enemy's name with an intensity and passion that were unmistakably that of a lover rather than someone claiming a prisoner by force as they had expected.

The men looked at each other, some seeming lost, others already sporting scandalized expressions of disapproval, not sure on how to voice their thoughts on the subject, or whether or not this new development should be taken as a betrayal on the part of their commander.

The men had vaguely lost expressions on their faces, a few looking puzzled to the point of not being sure whether they should openly disapprove or not, others already taking on a mask of undecided anger at the unmistakable sounds that one could easily take for a betrayal of their race.  
Many of the hunters turned around, searching the faces of their colleagues, instinctively trying to find out how the others were taking the news and unconsciously wondering whether they should express anger too or shrug it off. It was the turning point, the decisive moment in which a crowd's momentum wavers like a wave reaching its highest point, before its opinion settles and the wave crashes down, its final flow decided and no longer possible to change.

But before the crowd's ideas could risk settling for something sour, a young brown haired hunter pushed his way amongst them quickly, rushing to go stand by the entry of the tent. He folded his arms with a resolute expression before exclaiming loudly, making sure his voice carried over even to the soldiers in the back of the crowd.** "Good!! He _really_**** needed to lighten up already!!"**

It was Zero's lieutenant and right-hand man. The only one among them who would have dared speaking of the commander that way, for he was also a good friend of Zero's, regardless of how much the loner commander would refuse to let people get too close to him.

The hunters stared at his gruff look and comically exaggerated seriousness, and then exchanged glances with each other before one of them cracked up laughing, quickly joined by the lieutenant himself.

Soon, a number of soldiers couldn't help but start laughing too.  
Seeing a high-ranked officer, of all people, taking the situation so lightly quickly dispelled the winds of trouble, and as soldiers were often disposed to, the matter had now turned to harmless sexual jokes accompanied by elbow nudges and crude laughter. Few among them still shook their heads disapprovingly, but they were very much ignored by the others, and did it more for morality's sake than out of a serious intent to go against the situation. The danger was avoided, and the soldiers' mood was back to the lightness and joy of the recent victory.

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* * *

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A few hours later, there wasn't anything left of the animosity that had threatened to spark when the men had heard their commander and the pureblood together. It was quite the opposite, even. Their long time admiration of Zero had combined with the current situation to produce looks of awe and knowing smiles that vaguely disgusted Zero more than anything, as he passed by his men and felt the renewed adoration in their eyes, as if his conquests in bed somehow equated also to war victories, or at least to victories of which they inherited some of the glory by being his soldiers.

Already, tales were being told about his prowess, tales entirely spun by people who obviously weren't present and had clearly made it all up. The tales mostly told about how the valiant commander of the hunter armies, after defeating the enemy in the battlefield, had charmed its pureblooded king and faced him in a single match, besting him in bed and bewitching him completely until the enemy was at his feet, not by force but by his own choice.

After controlling himself to resist the urge to slap some sense into the first idiots he overheard telling such tales, Zero decided that whatever he did, idiotic stories would go around anyway, so it wasn't worth the trouble, much as the temptation was hard to resist.

Instead, Zero focused on the much more important task at hand, and organized meeting after meeting with his various officers, with the exception of his lieutenant, with whom he had already discussed the matter, and to whom he'd entrusted the protection of Kaname while he was away. He didn't want to leave the pureblood alone even for a moment, afraid that the soldiers may get stupid ideas.

Zero trusted his men, but when it concerned a matter of such importance said trust only went as far as he could watch them. The only person in there he trusted with Kaname's safety was his right-hand man, and even then Zero couldn't help but want to return as fast as he could. He didn't like the idea of leaving Kaname to wake up alone either, but the pureblood was sleeping so well that he didn't want to disturb him when he had gone through so much the previous day.

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* * *

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Meanwhile, Zero's lieutenant was serving Kaname tea with biscuits, while filling the pureblood in with the nonsensical and somewhat amusing tales the soldiers had been telling based on what they'd overheard of the previous night… although he was naturally skimming over the cruder details of some of the stories, just in case.

Kaname was now mostly decent, dressed in a loose brocade robe –clearly not something Zero would have worn, so he guessed it belonged to his unexpected host, but it was cleanly washed and very comfortable, so he didn't ask the man any questions.

They were sitting on the bed, where cushions were plopped up so that Kaname could keep a position that was less straining on his still aching body. A small table was pulled nearby, an assortment of biscuits atop it, sharing it with a polished metal tea-pot and other tea necessities.

The various versions of the story took them from laughter to consternation, and the young officer paid close attention to the pureblood's expressions to see if he should steer the subject away when something turned out to feel more hurtful than funny.

Kaname quite inevitably caught on the man's tactful move – conversation maneuvering was a subject the pureblood excelled in after all – and eventually dropped his gaze to the half-empty tea cup in his hand, his features permeated with a visible dose of sadness.

"You don't have to worry about making the stories sound less bad for my sake. As long as Zero's reputation is intact, I can't bring myself to mind much if…" he hesitated for a fraction of an instant, before abandoning his indecision at the choice of words " …if I'm made to be the whore in the soldiers' tales."

The pureblood was surprised by the sound of the lieutenant's teacup hitting the plate as he spoke the last part. The man was staring at him with a look of shock, absolute determination shining through his honest gaze as he refuted Kaname's argument immediately.

"You could never be a whore. Never. You're someone of the utmost importance, believe me."

Kaname couldn't help the measure of bitterness that seeped into his voice as he inquired softly "Really? What makes you think so?"

But his young interlocutor wasn't put off by the pureblood's uncertainty, and continued, in a confidential tone.

"Zero… isn't exactly a person of many words, as you know. And yet, I've been around for long enough to have seen it in his eyes so very often… that emptiness that was eating him inside."  
The young hunter set down his cup and plate and turned further toward the pureblood, wanting to make sure he had Kaname's full attention before he continued. "Well, this morning when he called me over and asked me to protect you, that emptiness was gone. You did that. You complete him, in a way so perfect that he'd never be whole without you."

Kaname couldn't help but stare at the man's face. The young officer was dead serious.

The pureblood opened his mouth, and, against everything he was used to, he suddenly couldn't find the words to express what he meant to say, and closed it again, a flush spreading on his cheeks in a most embarrassing manner.

Kaname was even more beautiful off balance and sporting that unguarded expression on his face. It was almost painful to look at such beauty and know you could never have it, but the young man was loyal enough to his friend that he felt happy for Zero rather than envious, and merely finished making his point.

"And I'm sure the opposite is just as true. You two complete each other. So have hope in the future!"

The young lieutenant beamed at the pureblood with a sincere smile as he spoke, a smile which he kept on his face as they both turned to the entrance of the room simultaneously, the very instant they felt the entry of the one they were talking about.

All aches forgotten at the sight of Zero, Kaname practically jumped off the bed and threw himself into his lover's open arms, burying his face into his shoulder as Zero held onto him tightly, hands instinctively sliding gently down the pureblood's back in a reassuring caress as he buried his face into Kaname's tousled locks and inhaled deeply the delightful scent he had so terribly missed for so long.

Zero had been organizing everything to leave the hunter army. He'd still stay for a short time, to help organize things now that the war was over, and to minimize as much as possible the abuse of the prisoners by the hunter army, but once that period was over, he'd leave everything in the hands of his lieutenant and take Kaname with him, far from anything that could harm them.  
Let the politicians and activists take over. The time for warriors was hopefully gone, and even if it wasn't and a new war broke out one day, _their_ war was over. Zero was never going to let anyone with ill intentions anywhere near the pureblood, ever again.

He felt like he had an eternity to make up for, especially if he was ever going to forgive himself for having had to wait until he nearly lost Kaname to finally fully understand just how much the pureblood meant to him.

Zero ran a hand through Kaname's hair, lingering on the back of his head, the contact sending delightful little shivers rippling under the pureblood's skin and earning a contented sigh from him.

"I'm sorry I didn't wake you up before I left, my love. I'm here now…"

Kaname replied with a passionate kiss instead of words, clinging to Zero, arms tightly wrapped around the hunter's back, savoring the warmth emanating from his lover's body and seeping through his clothes.

They held onto each other tightly, refusing to let go, relishing in the intimate moment.

And much as he knew he would still struggle for quite a while with the trauma from the previous day, Kaname couldn't help but feel it was a small price to pay for what they had now. The two had spent years of agonizing emptiness, torn from each other and believing that there was no future ahead, and now they finally found themselves filled with the most unexpected hope in what lay ahead, a newfound certainty in each other's love and intentions giving them the strength to stand and face the future, no longer by themselves but together now, not willing to ever be parted again by anyone or anything.

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~The End~

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_Happy end! XD;;; Despite the loads of angst on the way there…? XD;;; *lol*_

_I wanted the lieutenant to be for Zero a little bit like what Takuma is for Kaname in the series… He was a necessity for that position and to dispel the crowd's ideas when they overheard Zero and Kaname together, but I ended up not giving him a name. XD;;;  
I almost did it in the last chapter already, but in the end he became the nameless lieutenant. XD;_

_This is rather AU already, so I didn't go into what happened to the Night Class, but I'd like to think they've survived the war and were fine afterwards too. :)_


End file.
